Fruit-grader.



J. A.' WOODS, Jn'.

F BUIT GRADER. AIPLIOATIOH FILED 11.22, 1912.

Patented Sept. 10, 1912.

2 SHEETS-433E! 1.

' DQLUMIIA PLANMIAPH 00-, WASHINGTON, D- C.

J. A. WOODS, J11. FRUIT GRADER.

APPLIUATION FILED 11111.22, 1912. 1 038 Q56 Patented Sept. 10, 1912.

I 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

CIA/4W W247"? f y 6km,

JAMES A. WOODS, JR., OF OGDEN, UTAH.

FRUIT-GRADER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 10, 1912.

Application filed March 22, 1912. Serial No. 685,434.

devices, which will be fully described hereinafter, and then pointed outin the claims.

Other objects will appear and be better understood from that embodimentof my invention of which the following is a specification, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, in which;

Figure l is a side elevation of the device. Fig. 2 is a plan. Fig. 3 isa detail vertical cross section taken through the grading element, alsoshowing the upper portions of the grading tables. Fig. 4 is a detailerspective of the feed controlling mechanism. Fig. 5 is a detailelevation of a modified form of retarder arm.

The device as illustrated is portable and if desired, may be taken intoa fruit orchard and placed upon the ground and operated by the fruitintroduced or fed thereto. It will, of course, be understood that it isimmaterial as to where the device is placed; that is to say, it may bearranged in a fruit store house, or any other place where it is foundmost desirable to grade fruit according to size.

The legs 5 are adjustably secured to the skids 6 which constitute thebase so that the frame 7 which is arranged atthe upper ends of the legs5 may be adjusted into a horizontal position regardless of the slope orunevenness of the ground upon which the skids bear. The shaft 8 which isjournaled in boxings 9 on the frame has mounted upon it a hub 10 towhich is fixed the inner ends of the radial arms 11 whose outer endshave suitably secured thereto, the cross pieces 12. The shaft with theparts thus connected-thereto constitutes a retarder.

The fruit is introduced into a hopper 14 which connects with an inclinedconveyer 13 whose inclination may be varied by ad,

justing the struts 15 on the racks 16 carried by certain of thesupporting legs 5; and from the conveyer 13 the fruit moves by gravityinto grading element a which is herein shown as quadrantal in contourand extending from one end of the conveyer 13 around a portion of theretarder b. The hangers 1717 connect the grading element with suitableportions of the frame and hold it in the position shown. The passages 18for the small size fruit are located nearest the discharge end of theconveyer l3 and to one end of the passages 19 for the medium size fruit,and the passages 20 for the large size fruit are located at one end ofthe passages 19. The partitions 21 between the various passages areadjustably secured to cross pieces 22 connected to the opposite sides2323 of the grader a so that the sizes of the various passages may bevaried according to the character of the fruit to be graded. The upperedges of these partitions 21 also serve as tracks or bearings for thefruit as it passes through the grader a and the said upper edges arepositioned sufficiently far below the upper edges of the side walls 2323so as to enable the latter to act as ledges and prevent the fruit frommoving laterally off the grader a. The said upper edges are also sopositioned that during the rotation of the retarder they will be wipedby the cross pieces 12 thereof.

The discharge end portion of the conveyer is made up of the sections 40,41 and 42 which are arranged between the side walls of the conveyer. Thesection 42 is stationary while the section 41 is pivoted, the pivot 43passing 'througha portion beyond the middle of the said section so thatthe said section will be overbalanced. The section 40 is pivoted betweenthe sides of the conveyer and inclines downwardly from the section 41,which is held downwardly inclined by one end of the section 40 bearingthereon. The inclination of the section 41 is such as to throw itshigher end above the plane of the section 42 so that a depending apron44 carried by the elevated end of the said section which is also theheavierend, will form a stop for the fruit which is on the section 42. i1

VVhena lever 30 connected to an adjust-- able fulcrum 31 on the frame 7,is depressed by one of the pins 32 projecting laterally from the disk 33fixed to the shaft 8, the said lever, which has a pin andslot connection26 with. the section 40, elevates that end of the said section 40 towhich it is connected. The upward movement of the said end of the saidsection will continue until the pin 32 clears the lever. During theupward movement of the said end of the said section, a rib 4:5 thereonmoves into contact with a gate 24. The gate 24: is pivoted to a crossbar 25 and inclines downwardly to the section 40. The gate is made up ofprongs the lower end portions of which are curved, as shown at 46, andbear on the section 40 and thus prevent the fruit thereon from movingonto the grader. After the rib 45 contacts with the gate 24 the end ofthe section to which the rib is connected, is moved a trifle farther sothat the rib eventually lifts the gate and thus the fruit rolls from thesection 40 onto the grader. During the upward movement of the said endof the section 40 the. adjacent end of the section 11 follows until theopposite end of the said section 41 moves below the section 42 for ashort distance and abuts the stop 47. A quantity of 1 fruit from thesection 42 will then move onto the section 11. When the pin 32 clearsthe lever 30 the section 40 which is also overbalanced, will descend bygravity and into contact with one end of the section 4E1.

A spring such as shown at 48, aids the section 40 to descend and to rockthe sect-ion 41. This rocking of the section 41 causes the fruit to movetherefrom onto the section 4:0 and at the same time brings the apron 44:into position to check the movement of the fruit on the section 42. Thewhole number of pins 32 corresponds to the number of arms 11 and are soarranged that during the rotation of the retarder the pins will abut thefree end of the lever a trifle before the cross pieces 12 pass into theupper end' of the grader a. But by the time the gate has been raisedsufliciently far to permit the fruit to pass thereunder, the retarderwill have turned sufliciently to enable one of the cross pieces 12 toblock the upper 'end of the grader so that the fruit released by thegate will strike the said fcross piece, and the fruit by its weight onthe cross piece, will have the effect of further turning the retarderuntil the pin which depressed the lever 30 clears the same, whereuponthe gate will 010% under the action of its spring and out on? the supply'of fruit to the grader.

Now, if we assume that the first lot of fruit released by the gate wasmade up of differ'ent size units, it will be evident that the smallestof these will fall through the pas sages 18 as the retarder is turned by"the fruit, while the next in size will fall through the passages 19 andfinally the largest will fall throu'gh the passages 20. By the time thatthe smallest fruit has been discharged through the passages 22 the pinsucceeding that'which firstoperated "the gate, will have caused thelatter to reopen so that a second quantity of fruit will be releasedfrom the conveyer by the time that the first quantity has moved theretarder a trifle beyond the passages 18. This second quantity of fruitwill assist the remnants of the first discharged quantity to turn theretarder until the largest pieces of the first quantity fall through thepassages 20. By this time, however, a third quantity of fruit will havebeen released from the conveyer and moving into the upper open end ofthe grader. Thus, it will be seen that the action will be continuous aslong as fruit is fed from the hopper to the conveyer 13.

By properly adjusting the tension of the spring 48 the rotor of theretarder b may be made to turn relatively slow after any of the pins 32engage the lever 30. This will give ample time to the fruit movingthrough the grader, to enter the passages thereof. By adjusting thefulcrum 31 the throw or opening movement of the gate may be varied sothat a predetermined quantity of fruit will be released each time thegate is opened. The slats or prongs 34L of the gate are resilient sothat during the closing of the gate, if the end of one of these elementsshould contact with a piece of fruit it will yield so that the closingof the gate will not be interrupted.

The modified form of retarder shown in Fig. 5 is to be used when gradingirregularshaped fruit, the prongs 34: on this element being adapted toenter the fruit passages and to remove therefrom any fruit which mightbecome wedged therein.

From the fruit passages 18, 19 and 20 the fruit is conveyed by thechutes 36 to the grade tables 37 which are supported by the legs 38which are adjustable so as to admit of the table being arranged in ahorizontal plane when positioned upon an uneven surace.

What I claim as new is:

1. In a fruit grader, the combination of an inclined grading elementhaving a plurality of laterally adjustable fruit passages,

a conveyer for introducing fruit into the A upper end portion of thegrading element, and means operated by the fruit for retarding themovement of the same on 'thegrading element until it enters the fruitpassages thereof.

2. A fruit grader comprising an inclined grading element, a conveyeradapted to discharge into the upper end of the grading said gradingelement; of rotary means ops the fruit in the grading element aninclined grading element, a conveyer discharge into the upper end of 15erated by for controlling the passage of the iru't from adapted to theconveyer into the grader. the grading element, and rota means op- 4. Ina fruit ader, the combination with erated by the fruit in the gra ingelement for intermittently opera ing the controller t of the fruit ingelement and a conveyer and retarding t e movemen- 5 an inclined gra adated to discharge into the upper end 0 ofmeans for controlthrough thegrading element.

' f I afiix my signature sai grading elemen ling the discharge of iruitfrom the con- I veyer into the grader, and adjustable means in presence0 10 for intermitt 7 controller to do so by the fruit in the z T B.WHEELWRIGHT,

and actuat FnANoIs L. Woons.

grader.

5. In a fruit grader,

the combination of commissioner of Patentl,

d for five cents each, by addressing the Copies 0! this patent may beobtaine Washington, D. G.

